1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cable protection and guide device for securely protecting and guiding a flexible cable and/or hose. The cable or hose may be an electrical cable, optical fiber cable, and fluid supplying hose. The cable or hose may be used in machine tools, electronic devices, construction machines, industrial robots, carrier devices and others to feed electricity, fluid and air and to transmit signals or the like to a moving part thereof.
2. Related Art
The related art discloses a cable or the like protecting and guiding device having a large number of link frames each composed of a pair of right and left link plates. A connecting plate is suspended across the flexional inner peripheral side of the link plates and a connecting arm is suspended across the flexional outer peripheral side of the link plates. The connecting plates in combination with the link plates form a rectangular cable storing space and linked flexibly from each other by means of link pins and link pin holes provided in the link plates.
As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, this known cable or the like protection and guiding device is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Hei. 01-152958 (Page 1, FIGS. 1 and 2). For example, the reference discloses the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520 with the connecting plate 530 suspended across the flexional inner peripheral sides of the link plates. Link frame 501 forms a rectangular cable storing space by removably suspending the connecting arm 540 across the flexional outer peripheral sides of the link plates. Flexibly linking a plurality of link frames 501 to each other with link pins 521 and link pin holes 512, 522 provided in the link plates 510 and 520 enables the formation of an elongated rectangular cable storing space.
The connecting arm 540 is provided with a hook portion 541 on the both ends thereof. The hook portions 541 are formed so as to engage with engaging shafts 513 and 523 provided on the flexional outer peripheral side of the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520. That is, as shown in FIG. 14, one hook portion 541 is engaged with engaging shaft 513 so as to form a hinge enabling engagement of the other hook portion 541 with the engaging shaft 523. Connecting arm 540 is suspended across the flexional outer peripheral side of the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520.
Further, connecting arm 540 is anchored to the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520 by engaging the hook portions 541 with the engaging shafts 513, 523 and by abutting edge sides of the hook portions 541 with edge surface abutting walls 514, 524 provided on the outer sides of engaging shafts 513, 523 of the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520. Abutting both side surfaces of the hook portions 541 with side abutting walls 514, 524 provided on the both sides of the engaging shafts 513, 523 of the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520 securely fastens connecting arm 540 to the side walls 510, 520.
However, because the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520 are anchored only by the engagement of the hook portions 541 with the engaging shafts 513, 523, the abutment of the edge sides of the hook portions 541 with the end surface abutting walls 514, 524 and the abutment of both sides of the hook portions 541 with the side abutting walls 515, 525, the connecting arm 540 is prone to be disengaged upwardly. Connecting arm 540 is not well anchored and when the cable or the like moves within the cable storing space and presses against the connecting arm 540 upwardly the connecting arm may disengage and come loose thus defeating the purpose of the cable protection and guide device.
If the force applied by the cable twists the link frame 501, i.e., it is difficult for the connecting arm 540 to resist the twisting force applied by the cable because the pair of right and left link plates 510, 520 are just anchored with hook portions 541 whose width is narrow (in the longitudinal direction of the cable protection and guide device). In the related art device, the link frame 501 is prone to be twisted and deformed.